I agree completely with your dad except for one point: Police and military are unwarranted governmental intrusions and their functions would be better served by individually armed and trained citizen militia and private security forces.
This argument might have been true, say 200 years ago, but didn’t y’all watch any footage of the Gulf War? Do you honestly think that a group of you and your buddies, armed with pistols and shotguns have any chance against the sophisticated weapons the U.S. Military currently posseses? If the point of having weapons is to be able to use them against the gov’t, then you’re going to have to allow the private ownership of Nuclear/Biological/Chemical Weapons in order to level the playing field. And that is a stupid idea, IMHO…
The arguement for owning guns as protection against government isn’t about an all out war with the U.S. Military (though there have been relatively poorly armed civilian troops that have defeated bigger troops (see Vietnam and Afghanistan for recent examples)).
What protection my ‘pistols and shotguns’ offers me against the government is it keeps Paul Policeman or Adam ATF from walking into my house without a good reason and harrassing me for the fun of it. If they have to stop and think that there might be a gun in there they are more likely to act responsibly (i.e. follow proper channels to get a warrant and present it in an appropriate manner).
“…give them a free six-pack a week and free cable TV, and 99% of people will gladly walk right into a jail cell and live there.”
No, no! Hardly anyone would go for this deal. Americans will never live in jail for such a paltry offer. Free cable and two six-packs a night would probably do the trick, though. Providing you offered them a good choice of microbrews.
IMO, this whole argument is beside the point. You say you don’t think ordinary citizens with handguns, rifles, shotguns, and the like could stand up to the government. Others say we don’t need to defend ourselves against our government. Why, they say, we are the government! Okay, fine.
Never mind government! Consider criminals. Muggers, rapists, burglers. Consider nutcases who decide to shoot up their school or workplace or nighborhood McDonald’s. Surely we are entitled to keep and bear arms in order to defend ourselves against criminals and violent nuts. As far as I’m concerned, defense against criminals and lunatics is all the justification needed for the right to own – and carry – a gun.
(First, a PS to my last post – Fredge makes a very good point re the value of guns vs. govt.)
Now, re drunk driving. I don’t know how much of a libertarian I am, but I would say that the things that should be against the law are (a) causing harm to another, and (b) acting with reckless disregard to the probability of harm to another. There should be no laws against acts that cause harm only to the person committing the act.
Under “causing harm to another” I would list physical harm (murder, rape, assualt, etc.) and theft (burglery, robbery, confidence tricks, embezzlement, etc.) Under “acting with reckless disregard to the probability of harm to another” I would list drunken or drugged driving and reckless driving while not impaired, improper disposal of toxic waste, etc.
Non crimes: I would repeal all laws against the use of marijuana and hard drugs, gambling, prostitution, sex acts between or among consenting individuals 16 or over, and probably other things I can’t think of offhand. I’d quit “regulating” alcohol, tobacco, and firearms.
Misc exras: I’d like to repeal compulsory school attendence laws, but would settle for lowering the legal dropping out age to 14. I’d make sure juries were aware of their right to judge the law itself, and not just the facts of the case before them. And I’d repeal the minimum wage.
I had a friend who was on work-release for several months, he had to be at jail by 7PM, he got out around 9AM, went to work, usually got off early, and goofed off until he had to go back. He really enjoyed going to jail, it had a number of advantages home didn’t - working AC, cable television, lots of people to talk with, play chess with, etc. A lot of times he would go back to jail hours before he had to. The biggest complaints I hear about jail are (A) no members of the opposite sex and (B) it’s harder to get cigarettes, booze, drugs, etc… I have a feeling that if jails weren’t segregated by gender and they gave you beer and cigarettes it would be very popular.